For One Nen (30 page)

“Yes, this is Rhys the doctor of the Arcadia. I came to talk with the Hoth and we were attacked.”

“Are you saying the Hoth attacked you? I’m locking onto your position and back up will be there in two minutes.”

“Wait, the Hoth aren’t attacking us. I think it’s the people from the city who hate the Hoth,” Rhys tried to explain. “Don’t hurt them. I repeat, do not hurt the Hoth. We are in a cave and there are many wounded. I need my medical bag. And hurry! I hear them coming again!”

As Rhys talked on his PCD Darcy stormed the mouth of the cave with several others from inside. They held off another attack and after a few minutes both sides took cover.

Darcy dashed behind a pile of jagged rocks with another woman about her age.

They each held a staff ready to combat any attacker that might come at them. For a moment they peered around the rocks to see if there was anyone coming.

With a whisper the other woman said, “I’m going back to the cave to see about my girls.”

“Do you mean Fredora and Preen?” Darcy said as she slumped back securely behind the rocks.

“Yes,” the woman said as she turned around.

Both women fell silent as they looked at each other. Darcy looked at the beautiful blonde woman and only saw the freckled face
d child she had once tried to forget. “Lena?” she said softly.

“Darcy, that can’t be you,” Lena’s voice trembled.

They grabbed each other in a tight embrace.

Hearing shouts beyond the rocks they let go of each other to take a look. Darcy hurriedly wiped her eyes clear as she focused on a dozen runabouts hovering overhead.

Many arrows flew through the air toward the metal flying machines but there was also a phaser’s blast that hit one runabout. It only gave the ship a jolt and the pilot landed his craft on top of the mouth of the cave as other runabouts landed.

The people from
Earth disembarked quickly and took cover, firing their weapons with their superior fire power.

As the attackers were distracted, Darcy grabbed Lena by the arm and ran for the cave. They made it safely inside and heard no other commotion from the attackers.

“Is it really you?” Lena asked.

“It’s me. It’s really me. I’m here.” Darcy gasped with excitement.

“How did you get here?” Lena asked.

“I came on the Arcadia,” Darcy said as she grabbed Lena again in a tight hug. “I’ve missed you so much. Oh! I can’t believe this.”

Lena held on securely and said, “I thought I’d never see you again.”

Parting slightly they stared at each other.

“I just can’t believe it’s you,” Lena said. “I never thought you’d ever leave your mother.”

Darcy pulled away and rolled her eyes. “Don’t let’s talk about her.”

“Wait until the others hear about this,” Lena said excitedly.

Darcy took Lena’s hand and hurried her further into the cave. “Rhys brought Fredora back here.”

“Mother!” Preen shouted when she saw Lena. “We’re fine. Fredora is over here. A nice man carried her.”

“Are you alright?” Lena asked as she hugged her daughter.

“We’re alright mother,” said Preen.

“Who’s this?” asked Fredora.

“Girls,” Lena said with a wide grin and holding tight to Darcy’s hand, “this is my cousin Darcy.”

“I didn’t know you had a cousin named Darcy,” said Preen.

Darcy’s face fell and her shoulders slumped.

“We all decided not to talk about all those we left behind,” Lena said with her eyes growing glassy. She took Darcy’s hand. “It was a dreadful thing to do, I know, but for some of us it was the only way to live with our broken hearts. But…Oh! How I’ve missed you.” Lena gazed at Darcy as if she’d forgotten for a moment that they were in a battle. She continued to stare, “I just can’t believe it’s you. I never forgot you and I never stopped loving you.”

The reunited cousins were jolted back into reality when Rhys came running toward them with his medical bag. There were people carrying wounded behind him.

“Just lay them over here,” said Preen pointing to several cots.

“I need to help,” Darcy quickly said as she left Lena’s side.

Lena watched her cousin as she worked. There was much gray creeping around Darcy’s temples. There were shallow creases at the corners of her eyes. She had changed so much since Lena had last seen
her, but Lena could still see the little dark haired girl with pig tails she used to play with in the gardens as a child. Darcy had the same smile, the same dark but sparkling eyes. It was hard for Lena to believe this was the same person she had tried so long and so hard to forget and yet here she was. Her heart nearly burst from her chest.

She watched Darcy work until Preen asked her, “What’s wrong mother?”

“Nothing, dear,” she said. “I’m going to see if things have calmed down outside enough to go home. I want to gather the family and tell them about Darcy.”

“But mother,” Preen said with fear.

“Just stay with Fredora and you’ll be safe now that help has arrived. When Darcy gets free, tell her where I’ve gone.”

Lena left the cave, passing two Arcadia guards at the entrance. She swam to the water’s entrance that was covered with large bushes and vines.

297 AE

Aboard the EGRESS

Tala cleared her dry throat and reached for a small glass of water.

“I think I need to give my voice a break for a while,” she said looking, across the room at Deni and Molly who had been listening intently.

“Can we hear more later?” Molly asked as she straightened her legs and gave a long stretch.

Tala gave a knowing look to her partner who was still seated comfortably. All at once Deni’s heart gave a hard pounding beat and her eyes grew wide for a moment. She straightened herself in her chair as she felt the air in the room tingle around her.

“Molly?” Deni said as calmly as her bursting emotions would allow, “I think it’s about time for midday meal. How about you go meet your friends for a little while?”

“Can I come back later?” Molly asked. “I mean I think some of us were going to try to watch more videos but I’d rather hear about Darcy. Can I come back? Just us? Please.”

Tala’s eyes creased slightly when her smile grew. “I’d love to read more too but I need a break for a while. I’m just not used to reading out loud for so long. Come back after you have eaten with your friends and I’ll read more about Darcy.”

Deni’s golden eyes sparkled with delight as she sprang to her feet and hurried to the door. She held it open while Molly was still talking.

“Molly, you really should go, and um…eat,” Deni said to the student.
“And take your time.”

“Oh, yes. But I’ll be back soon.”

“Remember, take your time,” Deni said before Molly was very far out the door.

The door closed.

The latch snapped into place.

Deni turned to face Tala but leaned her back against the door for a moment and simply breathed long and slow.

She watched with growing exhilaration as Tala gracefully crossed the room in her flowing gown.

Tala moved as a dancer that knew each step and movement by heart. She closed the space between them but didn’t stop until she had pressed herself against her lover. Their kiss was heated by their passion, their love for each other, and their fear of what their future held. Each woman wanted to fill themselves with each other for as long as they could. Tala pulled away just enough for her lips to part from Deni’s.

Without opening her eyes Deni whispered, “I thought you needed a break.”

“Not from you,” Tala breathed into her ear. “Never from you.”

She lightly kissed each of Deni’s closed eyelids before her lips found Deni’s smooth awaiting lips. Kissing Deni along her neck she made her way downward as she undressed her along the way. 

Growing accustomed to having a little pile of clothes to easily lounge on they slipped to the floor and tangled their bodies into each other. Their bodies rose and fell in mutual pleasure. They were unaware they had tumbled each other across the cold floor until Tala hit her head against the leg of a table; knocking over the dish filled with dried flower petals.

The dish crashed next to Deni’s face causing her to gasp. The petals rained down over the lovers as they laughed for a long elated moment. Tala rubbed her head.

“Alright love?” Deni asked as she examined Tala’s head.

“I’m fine,” Tala said with an enormous laugh.

Deni lifted her bare body from the floor and held her hand out to help Tala up as well. She led Tala through the next room to their shared bed and there they stayed until there was a knock at the door.

Deni shot a glance up to Tala while still enjoying her body and whispered with a slight giggle, “Rested enough yet, Love?”

Tala gave a pleased smile to her lover before taking a long breath and wiping away the beads of sweat that had gathered at her temples.

Deni slid her body upward to Tala and kissed her mouth again before reaching for a buttoned shirt draped across the back of the chair next to the lamp stand.

Tala watched her a moment as Deni pushed each button into its designated buttonhole. She looked at this Tsila and her heart almost burst from her chest from the amount of love it tried to contain. She loved everything about Deni; her light brown body, her smooth skin, the way her tight red curls would get misshapen after they had tumbled their love about, the way Deni looked at her, the way she looked at her now.

With her golden eyes showing deep satisfaction, Deni gazed upon the beautiful Tala. “Shall I tell her to go?” Deni asked wearing nothing but her shirt.

“No, I’m coming,” Tala said without any sign of doing just that. She continued to stare at her love.

Another knock.

Deni crawled slowly back onto the bed and inched her way along Tala’s body until she was eye to eye above Tala’s lovely face.

“I’ll send her away,” Deni whispered.

Tala stretched up
open mouthed, wrapped her arms around Deni and tossed her on her back. She kissed her harder than she ever had.

“I want you,” Tala said at last.

Deni tried to scramble away, “I’ll tell her to go.”

“No,” Tala said as she let out a groan and tugged at Deni’s shirt. “No, I want you all the time. I want you next to me, and with me, and in me, and on me, and around me, and all about me; never leaving my side. But I want my stories in the middle of all of that.”

“Shh, Shh,” Deni said wrapping her comforting arms around her beautiful scared and overwhelmed lover. “Get dressed. I’ll let her in,” Deni said.

The golden-eyed gardener pulled on her brown pants and boots, slipping her knife into the side of her boot. She left the bedroom and opened the door to the garden. There sat Molly clasping her hands into patches of red and white; waiting.

Without a word between them Molly entered the apartment.

Tala came from the bedroom and sat in the soft reading chair.

The air was still and Tala and Molly remained silent while Deni worked around them. She retrieved a bowl from a small cupboard and left the room only saying, “I’ll be back.”

She quickly returned with a full bowl of ripe yellow tomatoes and handed it to Tala then squeezed into the small space next to her.

Deni took the book from Tala and said, “I’ll read. You eat.”

“You didn’t eat?” asked Molly. “Oh,” she added as her face turned a bright red.

Deni pulled a smaller chair close for them to rest their feet while Deni began to read more of the story of Darcy and her cousins.

11 BE

On the planet REEN

“I’m serious,” Lena almost squealed as she shook Vincent’s arm. “I wanted to tell you first. She’s in the caves with my Preen and Fredora. It’s her. I tell you it’s her.”

“Naw, it can’t be,” he said.

“It’s really her.”

“Damn! I never thought she’d ever leave, Mom,” Vincent said in a gasp. He lowered his head, “Mom must have died.”

Lena straightened the chair she’d almost turned over when she raced into Vincent’s house. She pushed it evenly in place at the table and stepped back to Vincent’s side.

Vincent faced her again and added, “Of course she died. I mean everyone we used to know has died.”

She slipped her arm through his and leaned her head on his shoulder, “But not your sister. Darcy is alive and she’s here.”

“Yes,” he patted her arm as he set his emotions in place for a reunion.

“I made peace with losing all of them even before we left on this journey. But this –damn; quite the surprise. My sister is still alive. Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go tell the others.”

“Chris is in the caves too. Let’s just have everyone meet us there. It’s safe for now.”

“I’ll gather everyone,” Lena said. “You go see your sister.”